


Agents of SHIELD - Forgotten Memories: Prologue "The Secrets We Keep"

by kamenrangerxvi01



Series: Earth-199999-Alpha Omnibus [27]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/F, Family Drama, Family Secrets, Gen, House Party, Pregnancy, Trans Character, Trans Female Character, Transgender
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 21:00:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 15,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29615343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kamenrangerxvi01/pseuds/kamenrangerxvi01
Summary: Daisy Johnson and her husband, fellow SHIELD agent Scott Riley, have finally found their dream home and have just finished moving in when a family member with a serious problem shows up on their doorstep afraid, very afraid. When one family secret gets out, several more are forced to the surface and tests just how strong the bonds of family can a be.And to make life interesting, a shadowy figure is quite interested in the family's secrets.
Relationships: Original female character(s)/Original Trans Character(s), Skye | Daisy Johnson/Original Male Character(s)
Series: Earth-199999-Alpha Omnibus [27]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1191670





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story is labeled a prologue because it began life as the first few chapters of my next major "Adventure" story, "Forgotten Memories",
> 
> But as time went on, it grew in a way and to a point I felt it needed to stand on it's own. I flipped back and forth before deciding to make the whole thing a new, full story arc, which actually helped me gather ideas to finish the main story.

“Well… This is it…” Scott said as he and Daisy stood on the top step. “Our house…”

“Yeah… our… house…” Daisy said, with a slight tremble in her voice. Scott had long figured where this was coming from. Every time Daisy had found some joy in life, it got taken away. This day, this place, it represented something she thought she’d never have.

It was a nice sized, two story home in the Forest Hills Gardens section of the Queens. Just the right size for their growing family.

They had been called to a nearby Inhuman activation a few weeks prior, passed the house with a “For Sale” sign outside, and immediately agreed that it was perfect.

It had a yard and a garage and was a relatively short drive for Scott to the hanger at Kennedy Airport where _Zephyr Zero_ was now being stored, and a few blocks walk to ether the Long Island Rail Road or the E subway to get Daisy into Manhattan to the field office off Times Square.

It was also a rather expensive piece of property, the area being one of the few private areas of New York City. One of those places where the co-operative organization owns even the streets. It had been paid for with what was left over from Daisy selling the building in Milwaukee her dad owned, with the balance a blank check from Scott’s maternal grandfather, given to the two as a wedding gift behind his Grandmother’s back.

“something the matter?” he asked her as he saw her lips quiver.

“You know, it’s like… this is the first real, like, home I’ve ever had.” She said, “A place to call my own.”

She looked up at him “Well, our own. That place in DC I had… the apartment in Brooklyn, those didn’t feel much better than my room back at the Playground… This is a house. A house. Our House… We own a house. I never thought I’d get to this point…”

“Don’t worry about it, I understand.” Scott said as he unlocked the door and pushed it open. “How about we start this on the right foot?”

“the right… Whoa!” She yelled as he picked her up and carried her inside.

“Was this really necessary?” she asked as he stood in the entranceway.

“What… I _indulge_ you all the time.”

“That… doesn’t… OK fine…” She admitted.

A few more moments passed before she finally asked, “So… Um… Can you put me down now?”

He let her back down and the two stood in the hall, holding hands. “Besides, I think you like it…” She said, poking him in the nose.

He rolled his eyes slightly at the suggestion.

“I still can’t believe it.” She said, running her hand up the staircase banister “after everything we’ve been through. Never thought I’d get to see the day I’d have an actual home. A place without an engine or blast doors. Windows that looked out to a real street with real trees. Not holograms on a wall.”

“No explosions, no guns, no homicidal AIs.” He said, looking down at Tallus “Only noise around here will be the pitter patter of teeny, tiny little feet.”

“Little feet…” she repeated in agreement “wait…Little feet?”

The two looked at each other.

“We left Toni in the car!” They said simultaneously, before running back to out to get their baby daughter.

Most of their stuff had already been brought in by Scott and a few of the others, but this was Daisy’s first time in there since they’d closed on it two weeks prior. The pair had placed Toni in her crib for a nap and were starting to unpack the last few things they’d brought when the doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it!” Daisy yelled up to Scott who’d taken a box up to their new bedroom.

“WOOOO! Party time!” Barry yelled as she and Iris entered, both carrying beer and snacks.

“Scott…” Daisy said, looking at him, still at the top of the stairs, with her hands on her hips. “A housewarming party? Seriously?”

“The others insisted.” He said with a shrug. “what was I supposed to do? Say no?”

“Since when do you bow to peer pressure.” She asked as he came down

“When you try getting someone to help you get a couch moved in these days…”

“YOU HAVE TELEKENISIS!” She hissed.

“Yes, but that only works when I’m here, now doesn’t it.” He said, “It was delivered while I was off on my last recovery mission.”

There was a knock on the door behind them.

“Sorry, door was open, figured I’d let myself in.” Coulson said, holding a bottle of champagne.

“Didn’t fathom you for the type.” Daisy said, as she accepted the gift. “First time at a wild party?” she asked, looking at Barry, who already had to be yanked off the coffee tabled by Iris.

“Well, considering I’m on my third chance, I’ve learned to live a little.” He said with a smile as Skye and Jas arrived with the twins in tow.

“Just… a word of caution.” Daisy whispered to him “You might want to keep an eye on Agent Allen over there, she’s kinda been reveling in the ability to get drunk again.”

The party didn’t get too crowded. Fitz and Jemma arrived about half an hour after the others and Mack and Yo-Yo about an hour after that, but the pair didn’t stay late.

Daisy was in the room Scott had set up as an entertainment room, having just finished showing Coulson the video of her and Scott’s wedding.

“Yeah, that last part always makes me cry two.” Daisy admitted as she put the DVD back in its case, seeing the tears in his eyes.

“Where’d that song come from; it was perfect…” He asked.

“Would you believe Disney World…” She said with a laugh. “Scott and I did the Epcot Crawl and got pretty wasted. We danced to that drunk as all hell and ended up tripping over each other and landing face first in a bush. I was pulling mulch of my hair the next morning…”

“I feel like I missed so much.” Coulson said. “You’re almost like a different person. You’ve grown so much. God, I still remember the day we found you and now look at you.”

Daisy sat next to him.

“You have no idea how proud I am of the woman you’ve grown into.” He told her, putting his hand on her shoulder.

“I still wouldn’t have gotten here without you.” Daisy replied with a smile

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” He added.

“It’s okay… I” Daisy began to say before Coulson interrupted her.

“I know what you were going through. The others told me. I’m sorry I put you on the spot like that, if you weren’t ready for it. I didn’t realize what it would do to you…”

“Strange as it seems, I’m okay with it now.” She said before her phone beeped “oh, would you look at the time, I’ll be back in a second.”

Daisy left the room, only to return with a bottle in one hand and baby Toni in the other.

She sat down next to him again and started to feed her child.

“Tell me the truth, Phil, you ever think you’d see me sitting here like this? A Mom?”

“Gotta say. No, not really.” Coulson said, smiling at the sight anyway.

“Barry, you’re bigger than me, I can’t hold you!” they heard Iris yell before hearing a loud thud and crash.

“I think you two need to get to know each other.” Daisy said, as she passed Toni to him and got up. “BARRY, You better not have dented anything!”


	2. Chapter 2

“I said, ‘over easy’, not ‘burned to a crisp’…” Daisy said as he put her plate down in front of her. The party, much to her annoyance, had gotten a little out of hand, resulting in Barry slamming her head into the wall and a near free for all breaking out later for Skye’s car keys. Barry was passed out on the couch still while Skye was propped up against the wall in the hallway by the front door.

“Well, I’ve never been much of a cook.” Scott told her “At least the house didn’t burn down.”

“This time.” She said as she started eating.

“We just need more practice.”

“Remind me again, how did you survive on clam chowder, Ramen Noodles and McDonalds when you were by yourself?”

“I’d run from the Museum to Fulton Ferry and back every morning. Three-mile round trip.”

“…While playing ‘ _Pokémon Go_ …”

“…guilty as charged…” He said as he handed her her mug off coffee and sat down with her. “Billings called again while you were in the shower.”

“Ugh…” Daisy moaned as she rolled her eyes “What does that pest want now?”

“She said another network wants an interview.”

“Did she say who?”

“She didn’t go into details, still doesn’t like talking to me for some reason.”

“I don’t know about you, but I don’t remember hiring her as my agent…”

“I think she has a crush on you or something, why else would she go out of her to get herself assigned as our, or should I say your, media liaison officer… God I hate being in the DoD… With our luck, Sherman is going to kept on by the next administration and he’s going to actually make us join the military…”

“Why does she keep getting everyone to talk to me?”

“I think it’s just ‘Girl Power’ stuff. Think about it. Danvers is never around; Romanoff is hard to get a hold of on a normal day when the whole mess about the accords isn’t taken into account… and poor Wanda…”

“I admit that while I do appreciate that… what I would really appreciate is five minutes of peace and quiet when there’s not a camera shoved in my face.”

“The least she can do is get us a case of Goo Gone… I’m sick and tired of having to scrape off the gunk left from tape the lighting crews put down… Nearly lost my deposit on the apartment.”

“Well… what if we turned part of the garage into a studio and leave the cars in the driveway?”

“Sure, where ‘Barney Fife’ can issue his ‘My first Policeman’s kit’ tickets…” Scott groaned

“What…?” His wife asked, giving him a look.

“I got into an argument the other day with one of the guys who handles security here…” Scott said, before he told her what had happened…

Scott was looking over the house, watching a work crew doing some upgrades SHIELD felt were needed when he heard a voice behind him.

“Sir, Can I help you?” a man asked. Scott turned to see one of the private patrol guards the corporation who oversees the neighborhood employs.

“It’s alright.” Scott said to the man “I just bought this property and I’m just inspecting the work.”

“Do you have permission?”

“I’m parked in the driveway. I’ve already closed on the house, it’s mine.”

“I mean for the work.”

“Well, no. I don’t need it.”

“Yes you do. All work must be approved by the corporation.”

“I think if you call back to your bosses, you’ll find I don’t need it. Go ahead, I’ll wait here.”

“We’ll see about that.” The man said as he pulled out his phone.

“Hey Greg, it’s me. I need to check on a work permit. Man claims to be the new owner is having illegal modifications done without… 87 con… Yes, yes he is.”

The man looked at Scott with a worried look.

“Would your name happen to be Johnson?”

“Johnson is my wife. I’m Riley.”

“Says his name is Riley should I… I see…. I didn’t know. I’m not in trouble, am I?”

His face turned sour. VERY sour

“Very… oh… you’re not kidding.”

The man looked up at Scott. Scott moved his hand off his waste and he caught sight of Scott’s badge on his belt.

“I am really sorry, sir, have a nice day, sir…” the man said as he hopped in his little Smart patrol car and drove off.

An older gentleman in a suit walked past as the guard was driving away in a hurry.

“You’ll have to excuse Alex. He thinks he’s the ‘sheriff in this here town’.”

“Anyone ever tell him the city already has a sheriff’s department?”

“Yes. He fainted.”

“With that attitude, surprised no one calls him ‘Dwight’ behind his back.”

“Who says they don’t. Marcus Greives. My wife and I live across the street.”

“Scott Riley.” He said as he shook the man’s hand.

“Getting a lot of work done here Mr. Riley. And without a permit from the corporation, you must know some people.”

“Not exactly who I know, but who I work for.” Scott said. As if on cue, a large van with a SHIELD logo pulled up outside. A team of technicians hopped out and went to work. The work crew who’d been there packed up and left as the SHIELD techs did the final connections.

“Well, I feel better…” Marcus said “I don’t mean to pry… but you wouldn’t know a cranky old geezer name Kent Riley, would you?”

“Let me guess, retired Air Force?”

“JAG corps, 85 to 05”

“He’s my grandfather, and don’t worry, the cranky only got worse until a few months ago.”

“he alright?”

“Oh, he’s fine. No, what happened is my wife and I had a baby and the man has done a complete 180. Becoming a great grandfather seemed to have melted the ice king…”

“I didn’t realize SHIELD paid this well.” Marcus said

“Mom’s side of family actually.”

The two men talked for a few minutes while the SHIELD crew piled back in their van and left.

“1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9…” Scott counted as the men headed out… “huh, thought there were ten. I guess I was seeing things.”

The doorbell rang, interrupting both Scott’s thought process and the story he was telling her.

“I’ll get it.” Scott said.

He walked outside, carefully stepping over the still passed out Skye, to find a familiar face standing on his front step.

“Hey Cousin…” the voice said in an English accent.

“Gwen? What the hell are you doing here?” Scott asked. His cousin was standing on his front steps with a suitcase, a BIG suitcase.

“Can’t a girl visit her favorite…” She began.

“Gwen…” Scott cut her off

“I ran away… we ran away…” She said looking back at the uber in the street where another girl was walking towards them.

“You’re an adult, it doesn’t really qualify as running away…” Scott said before he got a good look at the other woman “Oh no... don’t tell me…”

“Yeah… She’s pregnant.” Gwen said, “I got her pregnant.”


	3. Chapter 3

“Gwen…” The girl asked as she walked up “Is this him?”

“Yeah, this is my big cousin, Scott…” Gwen said “Um… Scott this is my girlfriend Laura…”

Scott shook the other girl’s hand before leading them inside.

“Unfortunately, you missed the housewarming party last night, though some bits of the party stayed.” Scott said, stepping over Skye again.

“Um… is that.” Laura asked, pointing to Skye.

“Oh, no, that’s Skye, her sister…” Gwen said, looking down at the passed out woman.

“But I thought…”

“Scott will probably explain later.” Gwen told her

“So… um… I take it this has to do with Nana being Nana?” Scott asked

“Yeah…” Gwen said, taking Laura’s hand “We met at school. I… brought her home to meet the family and… I would have though after what happened with you and Daisy… Nana would be fine with it. But no, she threw a fucking fit…”

“Does she not understand how this works?” Scott asked before Gwen gave him a look “…I should have answered my own question…”

His cellphone started ringing in his pocket. It was their grandparents home number.

He answered it, taking a deep breath in anticipation of this not going well.

“Hello, Scott?” A voice asked. Scott looked up at Gwen and mouthed “Granddad”

“Hey, Granddad… what a surprise, what’s up?”

“Look, um, Scott… Have you heard from Gwen recently by any chance?”

“No…” Scott lied “Is something the matter? She alright?”

Scott heard a rustling sound and some muttering on the other end of the line, the telltale sign of two old folks fighting over the telephone.

“She’s run away.” His grandmother said, having pulled the handset out of her husband’s hands.

“Nana… hi… I mean, Gwen is an adult now. I’m pretty sure that means she doesn’t need to tell you what’s she’s doing or where she’s going. She’s probably just mad about something. It’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”

“Your mother did the exact same thing to me at this age and look what happened!”

“Yeah… Me. _I_ happened.” He reminded her.

“Just… If she contacts you, you MUST tell her she is to come home at once.” His grandmother said sternly.

“Right…” Scott said as he heard the line cut off.

“so… what did Duchess of Crazy pull out of her hat this time?” Scott asked as he put his phone down and looked Gwen in the eye.

“Well… for one thing, she didn’t like the fact I’m Jewish.” Laura said before Gwen could speak up.

“Oh, you have to be fucking kidding me…?” Scott asked, “THAT’S what she’s upset about?”

“Well… that and the fact I’m from South London.” Laura added. ‘Um… is there…”

“First floor bathroom is behind the front stairs. If someone is puking it in, there are two upstairs, one second door on the left and the other in the master bedroom” He said as she thanked him and walked towards it.

“Gwen… Do you have any idea the situation you’ve put me in?” Scott asked, putting his hands on her shoulders.

“I know… I just… I figured I’d be safe here.” She told him, shifting her feet

“Safe from what? Gwen… what happened? Really? Come on, tell me.”

Daisy heard someone flush the bathroom and walk back out towards the front of the house. Curious, she followed the sound of footsteps and found Scott talking to Gwen.

“Gwen? Hey, what’s going on? Why are you here?”

“Oh… Hi Daisy.” Gwen said. Gwen had gotten more comfortable being around her and no longer panicked. “This is my girlfriend, Larua.”

Laura waved.

“You two sit down and rest. I’ll handle this.” Scott told them.

“So… is there anything you want to be telling me?” Daisy asked him as the two girls collapsed on the living room couch next to a still snoring Barry.

“Scott, what’s going on?”

“Gwen got her girlfriend pregnant and Nana blew her top… again…”

“She did what?” Daisy asked, flatly.

“Oh… right… I don’t think I ever told you.” Scott said, slightly nervous.

“Never told me what?”

He led her across the way into the TV room.

“Does the ‘All cards on the table’ rule still count when you’re trying to respect the privacy of someone else that you care about?” Scott asked, looking over into the other room to see Laura lean her head on Gwen’s shoulder. “Because there is something I’ve been keeping to myself out of a promise to Gwen.”

Daisy face shifted from one of disappointment to to a look of concern “Actually, I never thought about that…” she told him

“Okay, look, here’s the deal. The God’s honest truth is Gwen is transgender.”

“Oh…” Daisy said, surprised.

“She never had any kind of surgery downstairs” Scott continued “and her girlfriend is now pregnant with their child.”

“So… wait…” Daisy interrupted “Before we go any further, that absolute lunatic was upset about me, but is fine with a trans grandchild?”

“Remember what I said about my mother?”

Daisy nodded.

“Now imagine you have four grandsons and no granddaughters. Then imagine your youngest grandchild tells you they’re a girl…”

“Oh God, I can see where this is going.” Daisy said, shaking her head. “That woman is crazy.”

“Tell me something I don’t know.” He said. “So anyway… Just like with me, Nana seems to have had a spouse all picked out for Gwen… and once again ‘the four of us have conspired to ruin everything.”

Daisy tiled her head in confusion slightly.

“It’s an in-joke between the twins, Gwen and I.”

“So… would you like to explain why we have two extra houseguests?” Daisy asked.

“History kinda repeated itself. Gwen brought Laura to meet the family… at what turned out to be the same time Nana was going to introduce Gwen to the man she was supposed to marry. Fight breaks out. Things got thrown. Gwen and Laura ran away and came here.”

“Why us?”

“She didn’t say… honestly it more seemed like she didn’t want to say. I’m not sure. She looked absolutely terrified. I think there’s something else going on here.”

“What makes you think that?”

“Would you fly three thousand miles on a whim to stay with your super powered relatives if you DIDN’T feel your life was in danger?”


	4. Chapter 4

“Fy Arglwyddess Fach?” Scott’s mother said as she came in, having been called over to take care of the two. “Beth wyt ti’n Gweneud yma?”

“MOM” Scott hissed…

She rolled her eyes at him to which he responded “Mae fyn nhy, fy rheolau, yn siarad Saesneg!”

She crossed her arms and glared at him.

“Cousin Gwen DOESN’T UNDERSTAND A WORD YOU ARE SAYING!” he hissed again. “My house, my rules… ENGLISH”

“Not my fault that brother of mine didn’t teach him…” She said with a small tone.

“MOM!” Scott yelled “It’s bad enough you’re in one of your moods, but please stop misgendering her. You called her your ‘little lady’ two seconds ago…”

“you had me frustrated and I forgot, I’m sorry.”

“Mum… Look… I know you’re still upset about Maria. I know she was your friend… but I need your help. Please, don’t make this harder by forgetting. She came out when she was ten, this isn’t rocket science.” He told her “And she purposely chose YOUR name to honor YOU… Could you be bothered to show a little respect?”

“My name is Gwendolyn. She is Gwyneth.”

“When is the last time _ANYONE_ has called you Gwendolyn?” He asked her “Hell, I though your name was just Gwen till I was 12.”

“Will you two stop yelling? You’re going to wake Toni.” Daisy said as she came down the stairs from checking on baby Toni.

“I’m sorry…” the older woman said, “I just wasn’t expecting this.”

“What’s all the noise?” A Barry asked with a yawn as she sat up. “What I miss? Ugh… One thing I didn’t miss was hangovers…”

“Family business, Agent Allen.” Mrs. Riley said “Nothing to worry about.”

“No… No she should be in on this because we might need her.” Scott said “This isn’t the first time Nana has been this stupid… But something in Gwen’s eyes… This is serious, why else would she be here?”

“Barry, we need to head into the office. Come on.” Daisy said, grabbing the other woman by the arm and pulled her off the couch.

“If Skye wakes up, tell her to meet us there unless I call.” Scott told his mother as he followed Daisy and the frog marched Barry out the door.

“Where are you going?” Scott’s mother asked.

“To find just what is they ran away from.”

A little less than an hour later, the three agents were sitting at their stations in the main room of the Field office.

“I’m in your grandparents security system.” Barry said, holding her head with one hand a typing with the other. “Please tell him ‘SwanseCityis#1’ is not a great password.”

“Don’t think I haven’t tried” Scott said as the feed came on the big screen.

“What time are we looking for?”

“probably somewhere in the last 12 to 24 hours.” Scott said. He turned to one of the support staff members, Agent Millwood “Hey, Roger, could you do us a favor and get Barry something for her headache from the breakroom?”

The man nodded and left as Barry began to play back the recording.

“It’s roughly a four-hour drive from Swansea to London. Check in times, flight times, all the waiting around… we should be looking sometime mid-day, yesterday, their time.

“Okay. Here’s a lot of people leaving.”

“Jesus…” Daisy said as the facial recognition software immediately spat out who else was in the room. “What the hell is half of Roxxon’s board of directors doing at your grandparent’s house?”

“Putting that on the ‘to yell about’ list” Scott said.

Then the screen flashed up with a particular name.

“Make that the top of the list.” Scott said in shock.

“Get Deputy Directors Coulson and May on the line…” Daisy said to Agent Millwood as he returned. “NOW.”

Agent Millwood took one look at the screen, put down Barry’s aspirin and water and ran out the door.

“We need to play it back further…” Scott said, “I want to see if this has anything to do with Gwen. God, I hope not.”

Barry only needed to rewind a few more minutes of footage before she found the two young women running out of the house, jumping into a car and driving away. They played it back further, watching the fight inside, watching Gwen and Laura arrive and then watching the Roxxon contingent arrive. They then played everything back in the correct order.

“You guys don’t think she knew who he was, do you?” Barry asked the pair.

“It’s possible…” Scott said before turning to Daisy “We need to get to Kennedy. I’ll call ahead and have them get started on pre-flight.”

“Why?”

“Mom can keep an eye on everything with Skye. We have the who, we have the Where, we have the when, we just need the why… And we both know exactly who to ask, and I don’t think she’s going to be that cooperative over the phone.”


	5. Chapter 5

The stately manor home of the Warrens family, in the countryside outside of their hometown of Swansea in Wales, was quiet as the sun began to set on a cool, autumn evening. Family matriarch Abigale was pacing back and forth in the lounge while her husband Rhys was sitting in his recliner and their son Michael, the younger Gwen’s father, watched his mother pace from the sofa.

“She can’t have gone all the way to America… could she?” Abigale asked. “Scott would have said something by now… she must have gone somewhere. That stupid child never listens to me. None of you ever listen to me. Why do I even bother talking?”

“Mum… at the rate you’re pacing, you’re going to find yourself in the wine cellar in an hour…” Michael said, choosing to ignore the fact she had just insulted his only kid.

The phone on the table began to ring.

“Hello” Rhys asked as he picked up before his wife could get it.

“ _Hey Granddad… It’s Scott_.” The young man responded.

“Oh… Scott…” Rhys began to say before his wife yanked the handset out of his hand again.

“Scott, this is your Grandmother.” She said, “Have you heard from Gwen?”

“ _Yes_ ” he replied

“Do you know where she is?”

“ _Yes._ ”

She stood there, waiting for a moment before she continued.

“Well?”

“ _Well, what_?”

“Are you going to tell me where she is?”

“ _Nope… But I’m going to tell you where I am…_

“RIGHT BEHIND YOU.” He yelled, causing her to jump in a fright.

He had snuck in behind her.

“How dare you, young man.” She snapped.

“Nana… give it up with the ‘How dare you’. You sound like a Karen.” Scott said, as he ended the call on his cell phone and slid it into his pocket.

“Where’s Gwen?” Abigale demanded from him.

“she’s safe. They’re all safe.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“I know.” He said as he walked to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a drink. “I will fully answer your questions once you answer all of ours in a way that we find acceptable.”

“Put that down, young man.”

“Nana, I’m 32.” He said before downing the glass and pouring a second “Besides, takes, like, about eight of these to get me buzzed, might as well be water. Now… We want to know is what Alexander Tisch was doing in this house 24 hours ago? Huh? You know… He and his friends at Roxxon have been tied to some nasty, nasty things over the last few years... really decades when you think about it…”

“That’s none of your business.” Abigale said to him. “And who is this ‘We?”

“Actually, it _is_ his business.” A voice sad from the doorway. She turned and saw a middle-aged man in a suit standing in the archway from the hall.

“And who are you?” She demanded of him

“SHIELD Deputy Director Phil Coulson… I’m your grandson’s boss. And the ‘We’ is SHIELD.” The older man said as he walked into the room and stood before them.

“I’ve heard of you, Mr. Coulson.” Rhys said, “I was under the impression you were dead.”

“I got better. Again.” Coulson told him “Mr. and Mrs. Warrens, I’m going to cut to the chase. We’ve long known that Roxxon has been up to some shady stuff over the years. They’ had dealings with so many different organized crime groups, we lost count somewhere in the mid-1980s. But we never had a paper trail… till recently. Late last year, a splinter faction of a hacker group called ‘Rising Tide’ got into Roxxon’s deepest, most secure servers and found some really, really interesting documents.

“I don’t know if you remember, but in 2009, one of their oil platforms, right off New Orleans, blew sky high… lot of issues came out of that. You know who was one of the executives who ran the project that caused that explosion? Alexander Tisch. Not long after, one of their oil tankers dumped millions of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Who blocked the plan to get the tanker replaced before that happened, knowing full well the risk? Alexander Tisch.

“On a more personal note, a Roxxon subsidiary, Asano Robotics, also supplied technology to a company called Cybertek, who were a front for Hydra, who used the technology to create an army of cyborg soldiers, some of whom were used against me and my people. Know who called for them to sign off on that deal? Alexander Tisch…”

“Mr. Coulson, is there a point to this?” Rhys asked.

“Mr. Warrens, the point is quite simple. Roxxon uses every trick in the book try to protect itself. They escaped prosecution for the oil spill because of that influence. We have never been able to get things to stick, until that data breach. Tisch is…”

“LORD Tisch is a hereditary peer of the realm” Abigale said, butting in. “He’s a member of the House of Lords and I will not have you speaking that way of him under my roof.”

“He’s a peer with an extremely suspect past…” Scott said.

“What are you digging at?” Rhys asked.

“Granddad… why was he here?” Scott asked. “These kinds of people, they’re going to know right away when we’re on their case and he could just as easily find out I’m your grandson. I’m not a repair tech working in a basement anymore. I’m a full-blown field agent. I have two different guns on me right now. I deal with people like him all the time. He could have been walking in to discuss a business proposition or he could have come here to KILL YOU. It’s super Sus and I don’t like it. So, why was he here?”

Rhys looked over at his wife.

“Tell them…” He said to her.

“No.” She said, stomping her feet.

“Mum… what’s going on?” Michael said “Tell us.”

“I…” She stuttered “I arranged for his son to marry Gwen.”


	6. Chapter 6

“Nana…” Scott said, rubbing his temples “Before we get into anything else… What did I tell you a year ago about trying to decide these things for other people? It’s 2020. People don’t arrange marriages anymore.”

“If she married him, their first-born child would inherit the family seat and his title and...”

“Mum… we’ve been over this what feels like every five minutes for the last eight years” Michael said, shaking his head “Gwen is trans woman. As much as she wishes she could, she can’t get pregnant.”

“Well… I… I was hoping that, well, the smart people had figured that out by now.” She said before she turned and looked at Scott “I mean, I had to do something. If you had just listened to me, done what I told you to do like a good boy and not married that…”

Scott bent down till he was nose to nose with his grandmother.

“I don’t care the reasons, I don’t want to hear the moaning and the groaning.” Told her slowly “If you so much as DARE finish that sentence, it will be the _LAST_ thing you ever say…”

“HOW DARE….” His grandmother began

“EHM…” A cough sounded behind her. She turned and was now face to face with a leaning down Daisy.

“Hello… Nana…” Daisy said, her arms crossed and bearing a tone that made it quite clear she was pissed off.

“Oh… Daisy… Hello dear…”

“Have you been faking being nice to me all this time? AFTER I saved you from those crooks?”

“Well… I… I…” The older woman stammered. She hadn’t thought Daisy had made the trip as well.

“Nana…” Scott said, standing next to Daisy “All we want to know is what was said between you and Tisch. The man is dangerous.”

Abigale looked between the five people in the room and suddenly exploded in anger.

“GET OUT OF MY HOUSE YOU… YOU… INGRATES” She yelled. “GET OUT!”

“NO!” Rhys yelled. “Abigale… What has gotten into you?”

“You’re taking their side? Instead of your wife? A husband doesn’t do such things.”

“No, I’m not a husband taking sides. I’m a husband asking his wife a question. Why are you acting this way? What brought this on? You’re not making any sense.”

“Nobody ever listens to me. No one supports me. No one respects me. By the time I get back, I want you all OUT” She yelled again and stormed out into the garden before turning back inside for two seconds “And get that plane OFF my lawn!”

The room was silent for a few minutes before Coulson spoke up “Is she usually like this?”

“No, this is a stretch even for her…” Michael said “I can’t believe she wanted to marry my child off to the son of a wanted criminal…”

Michael turned to his father “Dad, seriously, what is wrong with her?”

“I wish I could say… All I know was it was after she went to Manchester a few weeks ago.”

“Well… Part one of why we’re here is answered.” Scott said. “She was the one dealing with him.”

“Part one?” Rhys asked.

“For the sake of honesty, something we seem to be lacking in this family, I will tell the two of you that Gwen DID contact us, and we do know where she is. She and Laura are safe, and we’ve got people keeping an eye on her. For security reasons, I won’t tell you where she is. But I will say this… She was terrified, I could tell. And when we logged in and played back your CCTV footage, we saw Tisch in this house. It doesn’t take an absolute genius to put two and two together. We’ve been hunting him down for nearly a year, but the man is slipperier than a greased pig. He’s always been two steps ahead of us. Now that we have a lead, we can find him, and he can be brought to justice. But that lead just threw a hissy fit and stomped out the door.”

“Yeah, you know her and her old-fashioned ways…” Rhys said

“You mean her racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia and everything else one cares to name…” Michael corrected his father

“Yeah… that…” Rhys said, again ashamed of his wife’s behavior “She insists she’s not a bigot… but she lost her cool when she heard Laura’s last name was Goldmark. She’s so old fashioned she complains still they don’t say mass in Latin anymore, so to hear our next great grandchild would be Jewish… didn’t sit well with her.”

“That part is obvious.” Daisy said, sitting down and turning to her grandfather-in-law. The way Abigale had spoken about her had gotten to her and she needed to have answers.

“I don’t mean to make this about me for a second, but… does she… how does she really feel about me?”

“Daisy… I honestly couldn’t tell you.” He said “I don’t know. She never talks about you or Scott for that matter. She only ever goes on and on about the Charlie, RJ and Gwen.”

“What about Toni?” Daisy asked.

“As far as Abigale is concerned… she doesn’t exist. She doesn’t keep any of her pictures around. She literally told someone at a party a few weeks ago she ‘couldn’t wait to become a great grandmother”

“So, what, she’s embarrassed about us?” Daisy asked, insulted even futher. “After I saved her life?”

“Yes.” Rhys admitted. “It breaks my heart, how she treats you all. Ignoring you own great grandchild over something they have no control over.

“Because we’re inhumans?” Scott asked.

“No…” he said… “It isn’t that.”

“Then…?” She began to ask as she stood up.

He nodded and confirmed it to her “Because you and Toni are Chinese… It’s always been the fact you’re Chinese. Sure, she wasn’t too happy about the inhuman part, but she mostly was just her hiding the fact she doesn’t like Asians.”

“I’m gonna go outside and vent to a wall…” Daisy said as she went out a different door towards _Zephyr Zero_ with Coulson following her, while Rhys got up to go to the bathroom, leaving Scott and Michael alone.

“This family and it’s damn urge to keep secrets…” Scott said as he downed another glass.

“You kept the fact you stayed with Shield a secret…” Michael said to him.

“Not saying I’m not guilty… but the kinds of secrets I deal in tend to result in people dying when they get out… That’s the difference.”

There was a loud sound outside.

“What was that?”

“Daisy, venting at a wall. You might want to call a mason in tomorrow.”

“I thought…”

“Venting with Daisy doesn’t involve yelling.”

Scott looked out the window at the hole his wife had just put in an old brick wall. Coulson was keeping his distance, watching her none the less.

“Daisy and I have built our entire relationship around openness to each other, ‘all cards on the table.” Scott said “I only skipped telling her about Gwen because it’s not at the forefront of my mind. I’m just used to Gwen being herself.”

“There’s another secret I should tell you… two actually.” Michael said, “Do you have time for a little ride? Come with me.”

“Yeah, I wasn’t leaving until I get straight answers out of that mother of yours and until Daisy is calm enough to fly.”

The two got in Michael’s car and drove down into the city. The ride was mostly quiet, Michael only starting to talk as they got into Swansea.

“I know you see things from a different perspective, both as someone of a younger generation and having grown up in America… When I was a boy… I was taught that we didn’t share our emotions for everyone to see… Stuff upper lip and all that. Taught not to stand out.” 

Scott nodded.

“Growing up… I know you spent most of your time with the General when your parents were busy… But when you were with us, did you ever get the feeling Nana favored RJ over you and Charlie?”

“I never… I just figured I’m thousands of miles away, and Charlie… was, well, Charlie.”

“And have you always noticed how defensive she gets when we call him RJ in front of her? Do you know why? Do you know why we call him RJ?”

“Isn’t it his middle initial?” Scott asked.

“No… His middle name is Peter after his father…” Michael said as they came to a stop… Outside a cemetery. “He’s ‘Reginald Junior.”

Michael climbed out of the car and Scott followed, leading him towards a small grave marker in the back.

“Your mother was nearly cut off from the family because she didn’t want to name you Reginald. It was only luck that your Aunt Vivian also has a Reginald in her family she loves and was going to name on of the twins that… Here we are… Hello, Reginald.”

Scott knelt down and read off the stone

“Reginald Warrens. Born 7 June 1971. Died 24 December 1971”.


	7. Chapter 7

Gwen and Laura were still sitting on Scott and Daisy’s couch, flipping through TV channels while Scott’s mother was in the kitchen making them something to eat.

They settled on something, “Say Yes to the Dress” and leaned into each other

“Can’t wait for that to be us.” Laura said.

Gwen sat up slightly. “You honestly mean that?”

Laura nodded.

“So…” The older Gwen said as she walked in with drinks and sandwiches for them “How long have you two known each other?”

“We met at the beginning of the year, when term started at university.” Laura said “We were sitting next to each other in a computer science course. One thing leads to another and…”

“Why did you stop taking your hormones?” Mrs. Riley asked her niece.

“I… That’s a little private… I don’t… ‘Performance issues’… okay, happy?” She said “After she told me she was pregnant I started again.”

“You didn’t have to tell me if you didn’t want to. You’re just like your dad when we were kids, one poke and he’d break.”

Laura got up to use the bathroom again, leaving the two Gwens alone.

“Gwen, why did you come here?” The elder one asked.

“Laura told me about the man at the house… how he was evil… And how… how bad things happen to the people who get in his way.”

“Why didn’t you tell Scott this?”

“I… I promised Laura I wouldn’t tell anyone.”

The baby monitor started making noise, relaying Toni’s crys from upstairs.

“Excuse me.” Mrs. Riley said, getting up.

Laura came back while she was gone.

“So… Have we been talking about me?”

“No…” Gwen said

“Awe, I like it when you brag about me.” She said, giving Gwen a nudge.

“Why don’t you want me to tell them about that Tisch fellow.”

“I told you in our best interest to not get involved. Besides… I think they already know. The things my brother saw.”

A few feet away, Gwen Riley was pressed against the wall, listing to what her niece and Laura were saying. Skye was upstairs taking care of Toni and Mrs. Riley was using this opportunity to get more information. She slowly crept into the kitchen and pulled out her phone.

“Mum let him down for a nap, comes back less than an hour later and he was gone” Michael told Scott as they looked at the grave. “Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. He was out baby brother. Younger than Simon. Mum was pregnant every other year for a good while. Remember when I told you how she started acting like you mother didn’t exist after she left? This was part of the reason. She changed after he died. Your Nana used to be a fun-loving person. Now, anything that made her unhappy or displeased her in anyway… it didn’t exist.”

“Christmas Eve… That’s terrible…” Scott said, “Why did you guys hide something like this? This seems so important. Does she like the fact I’ve spent my entire life thinking she’s just insane… where there’s this level of trauma behind it…”

“Scott… This is what people did back her day. They didn’t talk about these things. Your Grandmother believes that his death is her fault, and that if word got out, it would be a stain on her image, your grandfather’s image and the image of our company.”

Scott stood up and took a deep breath.

“After Daisy told me we were going to have a baby… I started doing research on child care. Even today, no one knows what causes it, so why… Nevermind, I think I know the answer to that.”

“It’s her guiding principle in life.” Michael said as he knelt down and touch his brother’s gravestone before making the sign of the cross and standing “Act as if she has the title that she feels she deserves.”

“Title? What title?” Scott asked, confused. He knew his Nana wanted to be important, but he didn’t think it went that far.

“That’s the second secret…” His uncle said as he stood up.

“Can I just ask if it’s also buried here?”

“No… It’s the reason why your grandmother goes to such great lengths to play matchmaker for the four of you.”

“She’s a social climber… I know that part.”

“The thing is…” Michael said, shaking his head “You grandmother believes the man she was told was her father… isn’t her father. Her parents worked for an Earl. Her father, at least the man who we think is her father, was the man’s personal assistant, so to speak. They called them a Batman back in the day, a junior solider to do everything for you. This Earl was an Army Brigadier. Her father convinced the Brigadier to hire on his fiancée, your great-grandmother, as his personal cook. The two had an affair, after the Fiancé went off the war… The same Earl… they bought the manor from.”

“Wait… he had no family, right?”

“Correct.”

“But if she is his daughter then…”

“She would, theoretically, have a legal claim to his titles. But she was never able to prove it. The man’s wish was followed, and he was cremated when he died, there’s no DNA to test off of.”

“Which means the four of us are her plan B. If she can’t get a title for herself, she’s going for the next best thing. Marry one of us off to someone of noble birth and restore the honor she feels she lost.”

“Exactly.”

“God fucking damn it, that woman is going to drive me insane…”

“It’s what she does best.” Michael said, “Let’s get back before she does something even more stupid than usual.”

Scott’s phone began to buzz.

“What’s up.” Michael asked.

“It’s from Mom…” Scott said before reading off the text “Mae'r ddau flodyn wedi blodeuo. Mae gan un arogl melys. Rydw i'n mynd i'w dyfrio.”

“What does that mean?” Michael asked “I hate it when she speaks welsh. None of us understand it.”

“But I do.” Scott said “Gwen and Laura are at my new house. Mom and Skye are watching over them. As for the message it’s a not only Welsh, but it’s a basic SHIELD code system, they use it to train people on the stronger ones. Mom and Dad would talk in it all the time when they didn’t want me to hear things. She just translated it into Welsh as an extra level of security. ‘Mae'r ddau flodyn wedi blodeuo’. That means ‘The flowers are blooming’ which means the girls are talking. ‘Mae gan un arogl melys’, or ‘one has a sweet scent’. That would mean one of the knows what we want to know, but she didn’t say which one. The last bit means ‘I’m going to water them’, which translates to she’s going to try to pump them for information.”

He texted her back. “pa flodyn sy'n arogli brafiaf?”

“I just asked her ‘which flower smells nicer’, i.e., which one is giving us the details.”

“ _Y chwyn_ ”

“The weed’. The outsider, the one that doesn’t ‘belong’. Which means Laura.”

His phone beeped again “! _Ble mae'r diapers ychwanegol_?”

“What does that mean, is it part of the code?”

“Well, it is part of the code.” He showed his phone to his uncle “See this exclamation mark at the start of the sentence?”

“Yes?

“It means ‘not using code anymore, what I’m saying is to be read literally’. It means she can’t find Toni’s diapers…”


	8. Chapter 8

“So… Are you done putting holes in century old walls, Agent Johnson?” Coulson asked.

The young woman fired off one more blast of her powers before turning around.

“Yeah, I got it out of my system.” Daisy said before crossing her arms and blowing some of her hair out of her face “I just… I’ve spent the better part of a year trying to get that woman to like me, okay. She keeps calling me every nasty thing in the book, all because I love her grandson and I’m not the Duchess of something or other. But… honestly, I could stomach that. I don’t have to but up with her. I don’t need to see her every day. Rest of the family adores me… But for her to ignore MY DAUGHTER, her great granddaughter… like that, to pretend she doesn’t exist…”

“Well… Sometimes you just can’t please everyone.” Coulson said “You know, the girl Ward and I pulled out that van… She didn’t care about those sorts of things. About approval. She did what she wanted to do, when she wanted to do it. That’s what always impressed me about you, your initiative. What changed, Daisy? You seem so… different.”

“I’m a mom.” She said. “Having a kid changes you.”

“That’s not it.” He said “Something is wrong, deep, deep down. I know you, Daisy. I know something inside is hurting. You can tell me.”

“Coulson… Phil… I…” She said “After you died… we… we all started to drift apart. Other than seeing Scott every other week when we were sent to Norfolk for the Avengers, or when he’d come down on the train to be with me… I was alone again… and I… My entire life, all I ever wanted was a family. To be accepted. To be loved. With You and May and FitzSimmons and Mack and the others… I finally had one… I finally felt like I belonged somewhere. And just like that, it was gone again. I was alone again and I didn’t want that.”

“It can’t have been all bad.” He reminded her “You know how confusing it is for me to have TWO of you running around. I get over you changing your name, and now, poof, ‘Skye’ is back.”

Daisy laughed at little, thinking about her sister.

“and then there’s Scott…” Coulson continued “I know you call him a ‘Goofball man-child’ but…”

“And now I’m married,” She interrupted “and I have a kid, and I am so damn over my head that I don’t know which way is up anymore. I’ve got that… Pain in the ass Billings constantly shoving her way into my house with a camera crew. I can tell Sherman wants me fired but can’t find a reason yet.

“I’ve been sidelined for an entire year now. I’m a fucking desk jockey and I CAN’T TAKE IT. Getting locked in the cell, wandering in a desert… I don’t even feel ALIVE anymore!

“Seven years ago… Yeah… I’m not that girl you pulled out the van anymore. Fuck, I don’t even know where that van is. They lost track of it the first time Hydra showed up.”

Daisy composed herself. She was going to calm down, but something Coulson had said caused a revelation.

“Wait… What did you just say about Scott?” She said to him

“That you sometimes call him a ‘Goofball man-child”

“No… I don’t… I…” She looked shaken. “It can’t be.”

Coulson tilted his head “you must have told me at some point…”

“I’ve THOUGHT about him that way on occasions, but I’ve never said that about him… expect for… a few months ago… not long after Tony was born… I had a dream… don’t know if that’s the right word for it because I kinda knocked myself unconscious… I saw you… we spoke… about…”

“…About how you were feeling lost.” Coulson said, looking at her with a bit of confusion of his own “About the people you though were always going to be there for you were constantly ditching you…”

“How?” Daisy asked, frightened. “I’ve never told anyone the details of that dream, I only told Scott I’d had it.

“Daisy… Don’t you see… It means that wasn’t a dream… Till just now, I thought it was to, or something… All I remember is dying, then that conversation, then waking up the day we found you in that other world where Scott was a ghost, and you were a Hydra defector… Daisy… It wasn’t a dream. It was real. I was there. That was ME you were talking to… I heard everything. But I guess I wasn’t the one talking.”


	9. Chapter 9

Scott and Michael returned to the car and headed back out of the city. they were about halfway back to the house, just on the edge of Swansea, when Scott noticed they were being followed.

“Uncle Mike, whatever you do, don’t turn around, don’t look behind you. We’ve got a tail.” Scott said.

“A what?” Michael asked.

“A tail. Someone’s following us. Don’t look in the mirror, act natural. We don’t want them to know we’re on to them. No quick movements. Drive normal.”

“Who are they?”

“Don’t know yet, but step one is to shake them.” Scott said.

“How?”

“Any roads we can turn down between here and the house?”

“Yes, right up around this bend.”

“Then take it… Why are you signaling your turn?” Scott asked as the car followed them around the corner onto the side road “The idea is to lose them.”

“You said drive normal.” Michael said “Maybe if I go faster.”

“No don’t…” Scott began to say but Michael gunned it.

“Yeah, now they know we’re on to them.” Scott said as he pulled out his 9MM.

“Wait, you have a gun on you?”

“I wasn’t lying.” Scott said as he turned off the safety.

Two cars zoomed off a side road, blocking their path and causing Michael to slam on the brakes.

“Nice going, Mr. Suttle driving…” Scott said, shaking off the whiplash.

“I’m sorry, I’ve never been chased before.”

“Let me do the talking.” Scott said.

“Step out the car with your hands up.” A voice called over a megaphone from the car behind them.

“What do we do?” Michael asked. Scott didn’t answer. He had an odd look on his face that slowly morphed into anger. He growled, made several angry grunting noises that may or may not have been words, holster his gun, yanked his seatbelt off and got out of the car screaming again.

“BARTY YOU… IDIOT! WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?”

“Scott, what are you doing here?” MI-6 agent Barty Riley asked, confused at seeing his third cousin in the car he’d been following.

“Riding in a car with my uncle. What the HELL are you doing following us?”

“We were investigating the Warrens dealings with Lord Tisch. We thought it was odd Mr. Warrens just drove down to the cemetery and... Why are you… wait, Uncle? Are you related to the Warrens?”

“Am I?” Scott asked, confused and angry “Am I? YES YOU FUCKING IDIOT! They’re my grandparents, where the hell have you been? You were at my wedding and so were they! I’m here for the same reason you are. I want to know what that son of a bitch is doing with my family and our company.”

Barty looked at the other agents he brought with him. “Everything’s alright, you can stand down. He’s on our side.”

“What are you even doing here? Isn’t this more MI-5’s thing? I thought you were still chasing your ex…”

“They send me wherever there’s a serious risk of a shootout. Useful to be bulletproof and Roxxon’s goon squad are packing heat. And as for Amanda… The trail went cold about two months ago…”

“Tell your men to pack it up, but you’re coming with me. Get in the car. Maybe once my grandmother knowns Her Majesty’s Secret Service are looking into this as well, she’ll talk.”

Scott introduced Michael and Barty to each other and spent time comparing notes on what had happened while Michael drove

“Tisch has been constantly taking leave of absences from his role in Parliament.” Barty said “He hasn’t shown up for the better part of five years, and for that matter, he’s almost never been seen in public in that time. Usually, the house would have done something about it, but… He’s got way too much influence.”

“So then, what would drive him to show up here? Just for the sake of getting his son a wife? How did Nana get into touch with him?”

“His son a wife?” Barty asked “His son is 5.”

“Oh no…” Scott said “Okay, this all makes more sense now… and it’s not good. Call your men back, tell them to head up to the house with us… This might get to be trouble serious…”


	10. Chapter 10

“How… How could that have been you?” Daisy asked Coulson. She was still in shock. He’d been inside her dream somehow.

“I don’t know…” Coulson told her “I thought it was my brain doing weird things or, I don’t know.”

“But… the Coulson I was talking to knew things I’ve never told anyone.”

“Like about Rose?”

Daisy nodded “Not even Scott knows about her. I have NEVER told him.”

“I would think your first serious romantic relationship, the reason you dropped out of high school and ran away…”

“What is going on?” Daisy asked, taking a step back.

“I don’t know, Daisy, I keep telling you that. You think I know what happened? I don’t even remember the light like last time I died… which is not a sentence one says every day… The things we deal with on a day-to-day basis, we’re getting into even weirder shit than even what I’m used, and I’ve was dealing with this insane BS since before you were born.”

Coulson sighed.

“I had my grave in Tahiti exhumed last week. I watched as they dug out my coffin. It was still sealed, but, obviously, I wasn’t in it. Even me prosthetic hand was gone. You want to try to explain that? Because I sure as hell can’t. So, if you think talking to me like that makes no sense, try being in my shoes…”

“Fury ‘buried’ you when you died the…” Daisy began to say.

“The difference here is I had a witness… May… She went with me. She went through all the steps when I died… This isn’t the same as what happened the first time.”

“so… where does that leave us now.” Daisy asked

“They ran every single test they could think of on me… and some they made up as they went along. Everything they could gather says I’m me… It’s literally the only thing that lets me sleep at night.”

They hear the roar of a car engine going fast.

“I think Scott and his uncle are back.” Coulson said.

“We are not done talking about this.” Daisy said as she headed to the car to meet up with her husband.

“No… we’re not.”

“Where did you go?” She asked Scott as he got out of the car, surprised to see Barty.

“Family history lesson. I’ll explain more later. Found this prick following us. You stormed out before I could ask, anything on the indoor CCTV system?

“Gone.” Daisy said

“gone?” Michael asked, “what was gone.”

“The main control unit for the house’s indoor camera system.” She said “Someone must have grabbed it during the yelling and screaming.”

“I sent my mother a message. She and Skye are moving Gwen and Laura to the hanger. Taking Toni with them.”

“That another one of your secret bunkers?”

“No, it’s literally a hanger. Safest place right now.” Scott said, walking towards _Zephyr Zero_. “I need to get something from inside, give me a minute.”

“A hanger?” Barry asked Daisy.

“A SHIELD forward deployment facility at Kennedy Airport that’s guarded 24/7 and currently has an in-transit strike team run by an old friend watching the place.”

“Mrs. Riley? I don’t know if you remember me from your son’s wedding, I’m Agent Piper.” The young woman said as she offered her hand.

“Right, yes… Scott said you’d be here.”

“I’m gonna put Toni in the lounge area.” Skye said, “I’ll stay with her, make sure she’s alright.”

Gwen nodded as Skye set off into the far side of the building.

“These the two?” Piper asked as the younger Gwen and Laura got out of the car.

“Yes, my niece and her girlfriend. They ran into Alexander Tisch at my parent’s house.”

“Yowch…” Piper said, cocking her rifle. “That guy doesn’t mess around. I’ll brief my squad and report back to you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I'm in a good mood, so I'm going to answer one question you might be having right now.
> 
> YES, this Coulson is the real Coulson, restored to life a second time. this isn't a Doople, an LMD, the "Sarge" body or anything else. It's him, body, soul and robot hand- the complete package.
> 
> This also isn't a "fix fic", I have a method to my madness.


	11. Chapter 11

Scott walked down the garden path till he came to a clearing, lit by a small, streetlight like lamp. When they were younger, Scott and the twins often joking called this spot “Narnia” for it’s out of place lamp pole. Nana Abigale was sitting there, still crying from earlier.

“Nana, we need to talk.”

“I though I told you to leave.” She said, curtly.

“You said you wanted me out of your house… As you can see. I’m not currently inside your house…”

“You always have to have a smart-arse answer for everything.”

“It’s kept me alive…” He said before walking closer.

“I have something to show you.” He said to her.

She looked up and watched as he reached behind his shoulder and drew his sword from its scabbard on his back. He showed her the crystalline blade in the light.

“This is the ‘Raq Chu Ma’viap’ which translates roughly to ‘The Sword of the First Regent’. Why it translates to that I’m still not sure, instead of “Sword of the Emperor”, but, hey, it’s mine. I’m told it’s over 3000 Earth years old. It’s a treasure of my father’s family.” He said to her. He tapped on his inhibitor, shutting off the smart lenses he had on, and knelt down so she could see him better. Abigale saw his purple of his iris for the first time.

He rested the sword on his knee and pointed to the series of squares along the blade.

“ _Forged by Emperor Sa as a symbol of his office_ ,” Scott read of the engraving, running his finger down the square shapes that were the Siltavi written language as he went “ _after the previous one was destroyed in battle_.” 

He flipped the sword to the other side and continued.

“ _As the barer of this blade, he is my ancestor. When I speak, it is in the name of him and those that came before him_.”

“What silly thing are you talking about.”

“It’s not silly…” A voice said, as a young woman walked down the path towards them.

“how’d I know you’d show up…” Scott said to her.

“I have my ways.” She said

“Howard?”

She held up her wrist to show the band she had on.

“So that’s where he went… I know he’s technically yours, but you could have told me you were going to borrow him.”

“Scott, who is this?” Nana asked.

“Well, to put it bluntly… Grandma… meet Grandma.”

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Abigale” Lilliantin said. Abigale got a good look at the new arrival, who also had purple eyes.

“Who are you?”

“My name is Princess Lilliantin.” The strange young lady said, “I’m Scott’s other grandmother.”

“You’re…” Abigale began to ask. This had to be a joke, she thought to herself, she looked no more older than Gwen.

“Several hundred Terran years old… I’m an alien.”

Lilliantin told Abigale her story and showed off her power by making the blade race around them at high speed without touching them before Scott caught it in mid-air and put it away.

“As much as I hate to say it…” Scott said “You got what you wanted. As much as I hate this fact, there’s no mechanism for abdication of your place in our family. I’m second in line for the throne of an empire spanning over Ninety star systems and 30 trillion subjects in a galaxy two million lightyears away.”

“30… trillion?” Abigale asked

“We tend to have lots of kids.” Lilliantin said “Side effect of living so long. My mother had about… 40 or so brothers and sisters.”

“And your father?” Nana asked, looking at Scott “does he know any of this.”

“We’re a bit guilty of keeping that to ourselves as well.” Scott said, before putting his hand on Lilliantin’s shoulder “I only found her two years ago. I would have told you, but, given your reaction to my status as an Inhuman and Daisy being half Chinese... I wasn’t sure I could trust you to deal with the fact one of your grandchildren is part alien.”

“My people do things a bit differently.” Lilliantin added as Scott muttered “That’s an understatement”

“As a woman I can’t hold the throne myself, but as my father’s first born, the inheritance still passes through me. Kent, my son, is ether still First Prince, because my father lives, or Kent is the Emperor and Trivlen… Scott is First Prince. Though if my father is dead, the empire is surely gone as well and the title means little if anything.”

“What did you call him?” Abigale asked

“Trivlen’ is my other name.” Scott admitted. “We all have Terran and Siltavi names. Mum and Daisy got theirs through being married to us. Dad, Toni and I had our names assigned thousands of years ago. Dad’s other name is Vorsen, Toni’s is Esolvia. As our respective spouses, Mum is En-Vors and Daisy is En-Triv.”

“So… this is real… You’re telling me the truth?” Abigale said.

“After what Uncle Mike told me, I figured this would be the perfect peace offering.” Scott said, before informing Nana what Michael had said at the cemetery.

Abigale looked down in defeat. Everything she’d wanted was standing right in front of her, and it had been kept from her because Scott felt she couldn’t be trusted with the information, let alone the fact he was embarrassed by it.

“there’s one more thing you need to see.” Scott said. He handed Lillaintin the sword, stepped away from the two and squeezed the side of his power inhibitor.

A small ball of light exited the device and expanded into his Victory Driver.

“You might enjoy this.” Lillantin said to Abigale.

Scott put the driver on and activated it. The two women watched as his Ride Armor formed around him.

_“RIDER! STRONGEST VICTORY! IRON DEFENDER.”_ The device called out as the armor locked and activated.

“You’re that… Other Iron Man I saw on the telly…” She said in amazement. Where once was her grandson, was the silver and golden, bug eyed armor of the Iron Rider “All those things I… That was you I saw?”

He nodded “That just what we ALLOW you all to know. I’ve fought things you wouldn’t believe in this suit. Hell, back a few months ago, I temporarily ceased to exist…” Scott said through the helmet before deactivating his transformation. “Nana… I’ve trusted you with my secrets… Now I need you to trust me with yours. What does Tisch want from us?”


	12. Chapter 12

The three returned to the manor house and sat Abiagle down on the sofa. Rhys and Michael were sat across from her, with Barty’s men standing in one corner and Lillaintin in another.

“Nana, this is my third cousin, via the General. Bartholomew Riley. See the resemblance? We all call him Barty. Those men are with him.”

“No one but you calls me that.” Barty insisted. Scott looked over to Barty’s men standing nearby.

“You guys call him Barty?” He asked. The men all nodded. Scott looked back at his cousin, who simply scoffed and turned to Abigale.

“Mrs. Warrens, I’m with MI-6, and I’m here on behalf of Her Majesty’s Government. We would very much like to know the same things the others would like to know about Lord Tisch.”

“If you’ll excuse me, what’s an MI-6 agent doing dealing with an internal issue?” Michael asked.

“I’m… well… I get sent wherever things might get… shooty. “

“You know,” Abigale said, looking at Barty “I’ve been trying to… Oh, that’s right. I remember you now… you’re the one Scott beat up with a cricket bat.”

Barty rolled his eyes. That’s what almost anyone who knew Scott remembered about him.

“So, is he like you?” Abigale asked Scott, who simply nodded.

“What’s his little magic trick then?”

“This…” Daisy said, pulling put her gun and shooting Barty in the side of the head.

“OWWWW….” Barty yelled, holding the side of his head, his “trying to sound refined and posh” accent breaking to his half Cornish, half Scouse natural one “Stop doing that… You have no idea how much that fucking stings.”

Abigale look at the young man in shock. Daisy has just put a bullet in his head, but nothing had happened. He was still standing, there was not blood. In fact, the bullet was lying on the carpet, crunched flat.

“The more force you apply to his skin, the denser it becomes. He’s practically bulletproof.” Daisy said before shooting him again a few more times “And it’s _great_ stress relief.”

The troops standing nearby all nodded in agreement.

“Fuck you lot, you’re supposed to be on my side.”

“Anyway…” Scott said “Nana… we need you to tell us how you got into contact with him.”

“I was at a fundraiser in Manchester, about a month ago, for our family’s charity.” Abigale to the group “I was just walking the room, glad handing everyone as you do. Someone pulled me over and introduced me to him. We talked for a while. I knew he was an Earl and that he was in the House of Lords, and after a while he mentioned his son knew of my grand daughter and they were wondering if she would be interested in meeting and I… I jumped the gun and move right into marriage. I’m sorry…”

“Mrs. Warrens…” Barty spoke up “Lord Tisch doesn’t have any kids Gwen’s age, at least none that we are aware of. And when you have this many intelligence agencies chasing one man… This isn’t something we’d miss.”

“I… I met the boy.” Abigale said “He was the spitting image of his father. Looked about twenty.”

“Did he say the young man’s name?” Coulson asked.

“Alexander Tisch the second.” She told him.

The four spies looked at each other.

“Looks like we’ve got three possibilities…” Scott said “One, this is all fake and Tisch was feeling her out for some reason. Second, the boy is illegitimate. Third, he’s Tisch’s legit son, but Tisch had him ghosted.”

“When he came here, he started asking a lot of questions…” Abigale added “The boy didn’t say anything himself, but Tisch wanted the full story. How we made our money, what our home life was like? I was just trying to be a good hostess I never paid much attention to his words… but he was asking a lot about our family history… specifically, Rhys’ side of the family. Nobody ever thinks about the wife’s side of the family…”

Scott and Daisy looked at each other.

“You don’t think?”

“Nana… was ANYTHING disturbed or out of place after they left?” Daisy asked. “Anything at all? Your husband’s sock draw, perhaps?”

“No…”

“No… Someone like him wouldn’t be THAT stupid.” Scott said.

“They took the camera unit…”

“We don’t know that for sure.”

“Anything to you want to share with the class?” Coulson asked.

“We’re pretty sure Roxxon, or at least Tisch, wanted that damn crystal.”

“What crys…” Barty began before turned to Scott and crossing his arms “Mate, are you fucking having me on?”

Scott shook his head. “Nope, his family just like us.” Scott said, looking at Rhys. “With one exception. We were on our own, his family had ties to Afterlife.”

“No way…” Barry said.

Before he could continue, there was a commotion outside. Another group of agents entered the house, followed by a man in a suit.

“Barty, I expected better than this… You were supposed to…” The man looked around the room at Scott, Daisy and Coulson.

“Who the blazes are you people and what are you doing here?”

“I’m Deputy Director Phil Coulson, with SHIELD.” Coulson said, speaking up.

“SHIELD, you are well out of your jurisdiction. I should have you arrested.”

“And who are you?” Scott asked

“I’m Director Walter Aims, MI-5. I’m the one who set up this sting that you SHIELD agents just ruined… Why am I telling you this, who the hell are you to ask me questions?”

“Um… Sir…” Barty began “he’s my cousin.”

“I’m Agent Scott Riley, this is my wife, Agent Daisy Johnson, who you might have heard of. And aside from being Barty’s cousin, I’m a grandchild of the Warren family. I am not here because I’m a SHIELD agent, I’m here because I want to know what a dangerous man like Tisch wants from my family. I had my youngest cousin show up on my doorstep frightened to death.”

Scott turned to his grandparents. “My mum and my sister-in-law Skye are watching her right now, she’s safe.”

“To be frank, Director Aims,” Coulson said “We’re not here as SHIELD, we’re here as concerned family. You and I both know what the man is capable of. If he showed up on your elderly relative’s doorstep, wouldn’t you be afraid two?

“Sir,” Scott told him “Let’s be honest. We all want the same thing, Tisch’s keister behind bars. So… we are more than happy to share every detail we’ve found with you, so long as you promise to stop having my family tailed. Kapeesh?”


	13. Chapter 13

Laura watched Mrs. Riley wander around the hanger, talking to the agents, practically giving orders. Gwen, her girlfriend, was taking a nap in another part of the hanger.

“You seem to know what you’re doing.” Laura said after Piper had walked away.

“I was an active-duty SHIELD agent for the better part of 30 years.” Mrs. Riley said, “I used to do this sort of thing for a living before Scott was born.”

“You did?”

“I was what we called a ‘Specialist” She said “That’s someone who runs solo ops. Bit like what you’d see in a ‘James Bond’ film, but usually not as interesting… or clean.”

“Clean?”

“You ever see him crawl through two miles of sewer pipe… twice? Once in and once back out again? All to steal a floppy disk. I smelt like shit for a week after that.”

“Why’d you quit?”

“I didn’t. I worked here until the agency fell apart during the Hydra take over attempt six years ago. But I did spend most of that time after Scott was born working a desk job in the human resources department.”

“What happened?” Laura asked. Part of her wanted to know what she was getting into. She and Gwen had a discussion before, and they’d come to a decision about their future. Laura had questions and needed answers.

“… We didn’t know it at the time, but my husband, Scott’s father, Kent, is half alien. Their alien DNA and human DNA don’t mix too well… If it wasn’t for the fact both my father and my father-in-law are Inhumans, it wouldn’t have worked at all. When Scott was born, the afterbirth took about half my uterus with it because it wasn’t designed to work with a human womb. If it wasn’t for the fact that I was in one of the world’s most advanced medical facilities at the time, I would have bled to death.”

Laura’s face went a little white as the older woman continued.

“My father-in-law, aside from his work in the US Air Force, was a high-ranking SHIELD agent. A bit like Mr. Coulson, you’ll meet him when they get back. We were touring the Triskelion, the headquarters building in Washington, with him as part of this stupid company promotional video. They wanted a ‘pretty face’ among the group… That and for some reason Kent Sr. REALLY wanted to be around when his grandson was born. I was two weeks late, but he begged me to come. So I did. Ended up saving my life. But… I was really weak and the damage also made it hard for me to bend over and move in certain directions.”

The hanger’s PA clicked on “ _Attention all personnel,_ Zephyr Zero _is inbound, twenty minutes out_.”

“Ah, good… All this noise is terrible for Toni, now we can get her home and to bed.” Mrs. Riley said.

“Can I ask you one more thing?” Laura asked.

“Sure dear, ask me anything.”

“Have you ever… you know… killed anyone.”

“Yes.” Mrs. Riley said, in a tone more inclined of someone asking, “would you like some water”.

“You did?”

“Laura, come here, sit with me.” Mrs. Riley said, motioning to two chairs near the wall. “something is on your mind, I can tell.”

“Gwen and I were talking. She wants to stay her.” Laura said as they sat down.

“Okay…”

“She wants to do what your son and his wife do. She thinks it’s all fun and games. I want to talk her out of it. I’m scared. I love her and I’m already worried she’s going to run off and not come back.”

Mrs. Riley took a deep breath. History was almost repeating itself.

“Taking her out of this is going to be difficult, because people often assume it is fun and games.” The older woman said, putting her hand on the younger’s shoulder. “The risk of going on a mission and not coming back, it’s one we live with every day.”

“I don’t mean to offend you, but the way you were so nonchalant about having killed… scared me.”

“Laura…” Mrs. Riley said, trying to find the best way to explain everything… “It takes a certain kind of fortitude to do this job. Honestly… agree that you might be right, I’m not sure Gwen is up for it… When her and her cousins were little, whenever we were in one place, they’d all ask me questions about my work. For Scott, this was just life, but for them, it was the most amazing thing in the world. They hung on to every word I said. The wide eyed looks I’d get from them as I told them about the places I’d been and the people I met. That’s why the other two joined the army. Gwen wanting to be like me, like the rest of my family, doesn’t surprise me in the least bit, if I’m honest.

_“Attention all personal,_ Zephyr Zero _is on final approach, ground crews standby.”_

The massive hanger doors began to slide open and one of the ground crew handed both women ear protection. “We’ll talk more when we don’t have to yell.” Mrs. Riley joked.


	14. Chapter 14

A few minutes went by, and soon the black jet touched down outside rolled into the building from the late evening darkness, the crew scurrying around her. The main stairs and ramp folded open and the three SHIELD agents and their passenger made their way down to the floor where Mrs. Riley was waiting for them.

“How’d it go?” She asked.

“Remember when we told you your dad had a terrigen Crystal on him.” Daisy told her as the group climbed down “We’re pretty sure that’s what Tisch was after.”

“Where’s it now?”

“After Daisy and Scott brought it in last year, it’s been in SHIELD’s Terrigen stash.” Coulson told her “We move it at regular, if random intervals. Never handled by the same people twice and never all at once.”

“Wow… how much do you guys have?”

“I hate to say this to you of all people, Gwendolyn, but that’s classified, ‘need to know’ only.”

“If it makes you feel better, mum, we don’t know ether.” Scott said.

“Well…” She said, with he hands on her hips “And here I thought good old Phil here told you lot everything?”

“It’s different when you don’t _WANT_ to know.” Daisy told her. “where’s Toni?”

“She’s in the lounge with Skye.” She said as Daisy headed off to check on her child.

“So, what about my parents?”

“MI-5 showed up while we were there.” Coulson said to her, “They’re taking point on this.”

“Given the Prime Minister is still good buddies with Stark,” Scott said “Odds are the house will probably be crawling with AI Avengers… God I hate those tin cans…”

“Alright, you two, my office, now, come on.” Scott said to Laura and Gwen, who were standing nearby, Gwen having been woken up by their arrival.

“Wow… look at you, boss man…” Laura said as he ushered the two inside, with Coulson following.

“Sit.” Scott said abruptly to the two, pointing at the chairs facing his desk. They took their seats while Scott went around and took his, with Coulson standing by the door.

“How did you know about Tisch?” Scott asked Gwen. “What made you come straight to Daisy and me?”

Laura spoke up first “I’m…. I’m the one who told her. Truth is I’m part of the Rising Tide. Gwen knows that. My brother, Milton, is as well. He was one of the ones who got into their server farm and saw all that stuff and leaked it.”

“Miss Goldmark…” Coulson asked, moving to stand next to the desk, leaning over her slightly “Is it just happenstance that you’re pregnant with the child of someone who just so happens to be related to one of Rising Tide’s most prominent former members… or should Agent Riley and I be reaching for our guns?”

“Well, no. It’s how we bonded as a couple. There’s kinda sorta an unofficial club at University.”

“Fan club… Great,” Scott muttered “Even _more_ groups of people bonding over how much they love Daisy… that’s not creepy or uncomfortable for me at all.”

“I mean, have you seen the fan…” Laura began to say before Scott cut her off.

“NO… I… HAVEN’T…” He said “I knew Daisy before she knew herself, I respect her too much to violate her like that. Okay, are we clear on that?”

“If I’m honest, it mostly our lot, the students in the computer science classes, there’s only like five or six of us and we usually just hang out during our downtime. It’s not so much just Daisy, it’s like a Rising Tide club in general, those of us who support the mission. Gwen didn’t tell me about the personal connection till later. ‘I guess at this point I probably should tell you that I’ve not only met Quake, but she’s married to my cousin. I was a bridesmaid at their wedding.’ We were already dating by that point. Hell, she told me she’s trans before she told me that.”

“We didn’t know he’d be there when we got to the house that night.” Gwen said, taking over “I wasn’t even going to tell Nana she was my girlfriend; just that she was a classmate, and we were working on a project together and I’d invited her over for dinner. Nana likes to have company over so she can brag, you know that. When we got in, Tisch was standing there. He looked right at me, he knew my name, it was fucking creepy. When Nana said she found me a husband, I flipped out. I started yelling. I got so pissed I dropped the bomb that Laura was pregnant with my child and I didn’t care if they accepted me for being different…”

Scott held up his hand.

“What exactly do you remember?” He asked them “Did ether of you recognize any of the other people in the room?”

They both shook their heads.

“what about the young man Nana said she wanted you to marry? Did you recognize him at all?”

“No.” They both said in turn.

“What happened after you left.”

“We… ran outside, and that’s when Laura told me everything. We… realized we needed to leave and fast and… you guys were the only ones we knew could keep us safe.

“Look, I’m not calling you guys liars, but there is something I’m missing here. What clued you in he was a threat?”

“… When Gwen yelled about being different, I saw him mutter ‘She must have changed” Laura said “Gwen had already told me about you having powers and I put two and two together and told her we needed to find you guys right away.”

Scott sat back. “Tisch thought you were misted… That would confirm what he wanted…”

“we drove back to Cardiff,” Gwen continued for Laura “back to University, so we could get our stuff. I kept a few changes of clothes in her room. We threw it all in that suitcase, drove into London and got on the first flight we could.”

Scott sighed

“Is that everything? That’s all you two remember?”

They both nodded.

“Okay then… Head back out to my mom, she’ll…” Scott began to say.

“Scott, wait… one more thing.” Gwen interrupted. “We’ve come to a decision. Laura and I have decided to stay here.”

“I mean, you two are adults…” He said

“It’s not just that. The thing is… I don’t want to be in the dumb family business… I want to be in the fun family business… I want to join SHIELD.”

“Gwen…’ He said “They made changes earlier in the year. You now have to be a citizen of the US to work for SHIELD. We are doing our damnedest to get them to change it back, but for now, we can’t take you on…”

Scott noticed Laura smile a little when he said that.

“There are other things that have to be worked out first, as well. Mum and I are your relatives, we know the right people who can easily make it so YOU can stay here. Laura, on the other hand, is going to be a different story… I don’t know, unless you two get married or something…”

“Fine. Then we’ll get married.” Gwen said, before turning to Laura who nodded in agreement “Just like you and Daisy, marry my baby momma…”

“For the last time I asked her to marry me BEFORE I knew she was pregnant. It just so happened to be the same day she chose to tell me.”

“Right…” Gwen said with a wink.

“God, I hate you sometimes. Go on. Mum will drive you two back to my place. We have some things to take care of first.”

The two grabbed hands and walked out.

“She’s hiding something.” Scott said.

“Yep.” Coulson said, “now we just need to find out what.”


	15. Chapter 15

“Did your men find the crystal?”

“Unfortunately, Lord Tisch… It seems to have already been removed from the Warrens Family’s possession.”

“My dear Secretary, you do realize how important that crystal is my new operation? If you ever want to climb that last rung of the ladder to Number 10… You’re going to have to work a little harder, my friend.”

“It was removed by SHIELD, my lord. They have it. The Warren family’s eldest grandchild, the American, is a SHIELD agent.”

“Well, that complicates things.” Tisch told him. “did you know that the Inhuman agent you borrowed from MI-6 just so happens to be related to the American?”

“No…, my Lord, I was unaware.”

“Pity… you could have used him to our advantage.”

“I was going to try to recruit him to the security service, but the Foreign Secretary has taken a shine to him and won’t let him go. I’m also aware that SHIELD has a ‘Take first, questions never’ policy when it comes to the items they confiscate.”

“The crystal was in the hands of a British subject…”

“and taken with his permission by a family member. My Lord, maybe if you spin whatever your plans are in a positive light… maybe they’ll just give you one.”

Tisch just gave the other man a look.

“Yes, I should have realized what I was saying before I said it.”

“This was so much easier when Wandsworth was still around.” Tisch said, wistfully “Him and that daughter of his made for a one stop shop for people like me. I had five of those crystals on order and then they both go dark, leaving me out a half million Pound down payment.”

“Baron Wandsworth? The former MI-6 executive member?”

“Of course. They were ‘R1’, the arms merchants, didn’t you know that?”

“No, my Lord.”

“Remind me, Fredrick,” Tisch said, with resting his hand near his face “how long have you been Home Secretary?”

“Eighteen months… Since the last major shuffle.”

“And in that time have you read a single one of the Black Papers?”

“The… what?”

“Are you telling me you’ve had this job for over a year and don’t know what a Black Paper is?”

The other man shifted in his seat.

“Fred, you’re an idiot.” Tisch groaned “Go back to your office, pick up your desk phone… and hold on, I’ll do you a favor.”

Tisch pulled out a pad of paper and wrote it down.

“Hold down the star button on the phone and enter this number. Tell the person who answers you want to see every Black Paper you are cleared to read.”


	16. Chapter 16

The next afternoon, as Daisy had taken Gwen to get some clothes, Laura sat at a table, sipping a coffee while admiring the little “town square” Scott and Daisy’s new neighborhood had, surrounded by Tudor style buildings on three sides and the train station across from her at the fourth.

She heard the footsteps of another person walking up behind her and sitting down with their back to her own.

“You’re late.” She said to them.

“I got lost.” The other person said “Did you know the M line goes to Queens two different ways? I ended up in the middle of a bunch of cemeteries and having to take the bus. So confusing. Anyway… Do you have it?”

“Yes.” Laura said. She reached behind her and passed the person a USB drive.

“And the unit.” He said.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a small, handled device.

“I did what you asked.” Laura said, “Now let him go.”

“Well, I’m nothing if not a man of my word.” The person sitting behind her said. She heard them rustle through their pockets and pulling out their phone. “You can tell Mr. Goldmark our business deal is complete. He’s free to go.”

She heard them get up and pocket their phone “Pleasure doing business with you, and congratulations on being the future Mrs. Warrens.”

“Fuck you.” She said to him, without looking.

“Miss, you have every right to be mad at me.” He said “If I was in your shoes I’d be in the same mood. Good thing I’m not in your shoes. Have a good day.”

“They’re not idiots, you know.” She said “They’re going to find out eventually."

"Oh, we are counting on it..." He told her. 

She waited until the sounds of his footsteps were gone before she pulled out her phone and called her brother.

“Milton?” She asked, “Milton are you alright?”

“Laura… Why?” He asked her.

“Are you okay, did they hurt you?”

“Laura, they just left. I’m fine… but why did help them?”

“I… I couldn’t let them hurt you.” She cried “I… I never wanted it to be this way… I figured… they just wanted one file… they didn’t even want me crack it, just get it.”

“What was the file?” her brother asked.

“I don’t know… Milton, it had a 1500-bit encryption. That’s four times NSA standard. It’s going to take them years to crack that.”

“Laura… these guys aren’t another Rising Tide splinter… they’re real deal. They came in here dressed like something out of ‘Call of Duty. Body armor, M-16s, the works.”

Laura sighed. “I don’t know what to do… If ether of us ever tells… they’re going to kill the other. And I love Gwen and if she finds out I what I did… I’m fucked. If Roxxon…”

“Roxxon?” Milton asked “Laura… They weren’t with Roxxon…”

“They… they weren’t?”

“No.”

“Oh… Oh God… What have I just done?”

**Author's Note:**

> Before anyone feels the need to ask, Gwen doesn't have a "dead name", she was just created as Gwen.


End file.
